Brazil tries conscription to fight social malaise

[Quetzal]

Brazil tries conscription to fight social malaise

Felipe da Silva Ramos, 17, is selling bonsais from an improvised stall in a street in Itaquera, a low-income suburb of São Paulo.

When business is good, he can sell five or 10 of the miniature trees in a week for between R$5 ($1.70, ?1.40, £0.94) and R$50 a piece, earning him up to R$300 a month in salary and commission. When business is bad, he earns much less.

"I did this before for a few months, then I worked for a builder, then I sold rubbish bags," he says. "Now I'm back here again. You have to make do with what you can get. There aren't any options."

Felipe goes to school, attends church, lives with his parents and stays out of trouble. But his age and social position make him a prime target for two great ills afflicting Brazil's young males in urban areas: unemployment and violent crime.

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